Screen tensioning device



y 1956 J. H. JENSEN 2,745,487

SCREEN TENSIONING DEVICE Filed April 19, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR Jack ff. Jensen.

BY My 6- m ATTORNEYS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR A unaen Jack ATTORNEYS J. H. JENSEN SCREEN TENSIONING DEVICE May 15, 1956 Filed April 19, 1954 United States Patent G SCREEN TENSIONING DEVICE Jack H. Jensen, San Leandro, Calif., assignor to Ry-Lock Company, Ltd., San Leandro, Califi, a corporation of California Application April 19, 1954, Serial No. 423,964

6 Claims. (Cl. 160-328) This invention relates in general to an improvement in a frameless or tension type window screen; such type of screen including a section of wire cloth fitted with a top cross bar adapted to be attached to the header of a window frame, and a bottom cross bar which is detachably connected to the sill by means of securing and screen tensioning devices.

The present invention is directed to, and it is a major object to provide, an improved securing and screen tensioning device for the above purpose; the device including, on a suitable mount fixed to the bottom cross bar, a manual lever arm pivoted in connection with the mount for rotary swinging motion in a transverse vertical plane, a relatively vertically movable element carried by the mount and secured to the sill, and novel mechanism operative to translate such swinging motion of the lever arm to relative upward vertical motion of said element whereby to tension the screen; the lever arm then occupying an over-dead-center, releasably locked position.

Another important object of the invention is to provide a screen tensioning device which has a relatively long vertical motion, as is desirable to accomplish eflective tensioning of the screen.

An additional object of the invention is to provide a screen tensioning device which is easy and convenient to operate manually, and to engage with, or release from, a screw on the sill.

A further object of the invention is to provide a screen tensioning device which is relatively thin front to rear, so that when the device is mounted on the bottom cross bar of a tension type screen, there is a minimum of projection therefrom; this being of advantage in sliding type windows, or in any window where there is limited space between the bottom cross bar of the screen and a window part.

It is also an object of the invention to provide a screen tensioning device which is simple in construction; the device being designed for ease and economy of manufacture and ready installation.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a practical, reliable, and durable screen tensioning device, and one which will be exceedingly effective for the purpose for which it is designed.

These objects are accomplished by means of such structure and relative arrangement of parts as will fully appear by a perusal of the following specification and claims.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is an elevation of one of the screen tensioning devices as in use but released; the screen being shown only in part, and the window frame partly in section.

Fig. 2 is a similar view, but shows the device in screen tensioning position.

Fig. 3 is a tranverse vertical section on line 33 of Fig. 1; the view showing the device in side elevation.

Fig. 4 is a plan view of the screen tensioning device, detached.

Fig. 5 is a vertical sectional elevation of the device taken on line 55 of Fig. 3; the device being detached.

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Fig. 6 is a vertical sectional elevation taken on line 6-6 of Fig. 4.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, and to the characters of reference marked thereon, the device is adapted for use in connection with a frameless or tension type of window screen which includes a rectangular section 1 of wire cloth or screen which overlies the Window opening; such section of wire cloth having a top cross bar (not shown) secured thereto at the upper end and attached by suitable means to the header of the window frame.

At its lower end the section 1 of wire cloth is secured to a bottom cross bar 2; the latter including, at its upper edge, an inverted or downwardly opening channel 3 into which the adjacent end portion of the section 1 of wire cloth is clamped, as shown. The bottom cross bar 2 also includes, at the lower portion thereof, and for its full length, an adjustable bottom strip 4; such strip, being U-shaped, straddles the bottom cross bar 2 from below. The purpose of the strip 4 is to adjustably close any slight gap which may exist above the sill 5 after the screen is tensioned. The section 1 of wire cloth, and the bottom cross bar 2, overlie and abut against the blind stops at each side of the window frame; one of said blind stops being shown at 6, and the related side of the window frame being shown at 7.

At transversely spaced points the bottom cross bar 2.

is fitted on the inner face with screen tensioning devices, one of which is here indicated generally at 8. The screen tensioning devices normally occupy positions on the bottom cross bar 2 adjacent the ends thereof, although on relatively wide screens a further one of the devices may be employed at a central point. However, as all of the screen tensioning devices are identical, a description of one will here sufiice.

Each screen tensioning device 3 comprises a flat vertical face plate 9 disposed in adjacent but spaced facing relation to the bottom cross bar 2; such plate 9 being formed, at its opposite side edges, with vertical, inturned, relatively narrow flanges 10. The flanges 10 merge at their outer edges with laterally, outwardly projecting wings 11 which bear in part against the bottom cross bar 2, and in part against the strip 4; the flanges 10 and wings 11 having an offset intermediate their ends, as shown, for the purpose of assuring such bearing on the bottom cross bar 2 and strip 4 (see Fig. 3).

At their upper ends the laterally projecting wings 11 are formed with hooks 12 which project through slots 13 in the bottom cross bar 2; the hooks then being forcefully down-bent and clamped against said cross bar, whereby to fixedly attach the wings 11, and consequently the face plate 9, to said bottom cross bar.

The face plate 9, together with the flanges 10, form a relatively shallow channel outwardly of the bottom cross bar 2, and in which channel a slide plate 14 is engaged for easy vertical sliding motion. In order to prevent any displacement of the slide plate 14 from such shallow channel, 9i. e. to maintain the slide plate 14 in engagement with the face plate 9retention fingers 15 are inturned from the flanges 10 and lie across the back of said slide plate.

At its lower end the slide plate 14 is formed with an outwardly projecting, somewhat upwardly inclined foot 16 having a central, outwardly opening notch 17 cut therein; the top surface of the foot 16 being dished about the inner portion of the notch 17, as at 18.

A headed screw 19 is run into the sill 5 in position such that the shank of said screw may be fully engaged in the notch 17 and the head of the screw engaged in the dished portion 18 with ease when the slide plate 14 is relatively lowered and the foot 16 manually drawn outwardly; i. e., toward the person.

A flat, radial lever arm 29 extends in a transverse vertical plane from an integral disc 21 on the inner end of said arm. The disc 20 lies flush against the outside of the face plate 9, and such disc is centrally or axially pivoted to said face plate by a headed rivet 22. While the rivet secures the disc 21 to the face plate 9, such rivet is not tight, and permits of rotation of said disc.

At its outer end portion the radial lever arm 20 is formed, at its lower edge, with a projecting finger tab 23.

At a radially offset or eccentric point the disc 21 is fitted with a crank pin 24 which extends inwardly through an arcuate motion-limiting slot 25 cut in the face plate 9, and which slot is covered from the outside by said disc 21. The arcuate slot 25 is of slightly more than 180 in extent; the lower end of said slot being in substantially vertical alinement with the axis of the rivet 22, while the upper end of said slot extends somewhat beyond the point of vertical alinement with said axis. The purpose of this feature will hereinafter appear.

The crank pin 24, in addition to passing through the arcuate slot 25, is of ufiicient length that it also passes through a horizontal cam slot 26 cut in the upper portion of the slide plate 14; the inner end of the crank pin 24 being headed, as at 27, with such head riding against the back surface of the slide plate 14 with an easy fit.

In the use of each screen tensioning device 8, as above described, the section of wire cloth 1 is initially not under tension, and at which time the bottom cross bar 2 is slightly raised above the sill 5; the radial lever arm 20, at the start, projecting laterally in one direction, with the crank pin 24 then engaged in the lower end of the arcuate slot 25 in the face plate 9.

In this position of the parts the slide plate 14 is relatively lowered, whereby the slotted foot 16 can be readily engaged by hand beneath the headed screw 19 on sill 5; the foot usually engaging under the screw head with some friction or snap action.

Thereafter, the radial lever arm 20, by finger manipulation of the tab 23, is swung from its starting, laterally projecting position, as in Fig. l, to a substantially opposite, laterally projecting position, as in Fig. 2. When this occurs the crankpin 2 traverses the arcuate slot 25 for substantially its full length; such pin simultaneously acting in the horizontal cam slot 26 to cause relative vertical upward sliding of the plate 14, orin other wordslowering of the face plate 9 together with the connected cross bar 2, which effectively tensions the section 1 of wire cloth.

With the rising motion of the crank pin 24 in the arcuate slot 25, said pin does of course have lateral travel in the horizontal cam slot 26.

Additionally, when the radial lever arm 20 is swung to its laterally projecting screen tensioning position, as in Fig. 2, the crank pin 24 has passed slightly beyond top dead-center relative to the axis of rotation, so that said lever is held, under the resultant tension of the screen, in a releasably locked position.

When the screen i tensioned by one or more of the devices 8 the bottom cross bar 2 closely approaches the sill 5, and if there is any remaining gap this is closed by adjustment of the bottom strip 4.

With the described device a frameless or tension type screen can be eifectively placed under relatively great tension by a simple manipulation of the lever arm 20; there being a substantial tension force applied to the screen by reason of the camming mechanism employed between said lever arm and the slide plate 14.

Further, as the travel of the slide plate 14 is substantially twice the distance between the axis of the rivet 22 and crank pin 24, such side plate has a relatively long stroke, which is desirable for the effective tensioning of the screen.

From the foregoing description it will be readily seen that there has been produced such a device as will substantially fulfill the objects of the invention, as set forth herein.

While this specification sets forth in detail the present and preferred construction of the device, still in practice such deviations from such detail may be resorted to as do not form a departure from the spirit of the invention, as defined by the appended claims.

Having thus described the invention, the following is claimed as new and useful, and upon which Letters Patent are desired:

1. A screen tensioning device for connection between the bottom cross bar of a frameless window screen and the adjacent sill; said device comprising a mount, means to secure the mount to the bottom cross bar, a slide carried by the mount and on which the mount is vertically slidable, said mount having a relatively raised initial position and a relatively lowered screen tensioning position, means to attach said slide at its lower end to the sill, and manually actuated cam means between the mount and slide operative to cause motion of the mount between said positions; said cam means including a rotary part, and a lever arm extending from said part whereby to rotate the same.

2. A screen tensioning device for connection between the bottom cross bar of a frarneless window screen and the adjacent sill; said device comprising a mount, means to secure the mount to the bottom cross bar, a slide carried by the mount and on which the mount is vertically slidable, said mount having a relatively raised initial position and a relatively lowered screen tensioning position, means to attach said slide at its lower end to the sill, and manually actuated cam means between the mount and slide operative to cause motion of the mount between said positions; said cam means being in an over-dead-center releasable holding position when the mount is in said relatively lowered screen tensioning position.

3. A screen tensioning device for connection between the bottom cross bar of a frameless window screen and the adjacent sill; said device comprising a mount, the mount including a face plate spaced in front of and secured to the bottom bar, a slide disposed between the face plate and said bottom bar and on which the face plate is slidable, said plate having a relatively raised initial position and a relatively lowered screen tensioning position, means to attach the slide at its lower end to the sill, a rotary part pivoted on the face plate for rotation in a transverse vertical plane, a radial lever arm projecting from said rotary part, and a crank pin projecting inwardly from the rotary part, the face plate having a vertically extending arcuate slot and the slide having a transversely extending slot therein and into both of which slots the crank pin projects; rotation of the said part causing the pin to travel in both slots and move said face plate vertically relative to said slide.

4. A device, as in claim 3, in which the upper end of the arcuate slot terminates adjacent but beyond a deadcenter relative to the axis of rotation of said part.

5. A screen tensioning device for connection between the bottom cross bar of a frameless window screen and the adjacent sill; said device comprising a mount, the mount including a face plate spaced in front of the bottom bar and secured thereto, a flat slide relatively vertically movable between the face plate and the bottom cross bar for vertical motion, said slide having a lowered initial position and a raised screen tensioning position relative thereto, means to attach the slide at its lower end to the sill, whereby relative movement is by said plate, a disc axially pivoted exteriorly on the face plate and having a radial lever arm projecting from the disc, the face plate having an arcuate slot therein back of the disc, said arcuate slot being concentric to the disc axis and extending vertically from a point below to a point above and slightly beyond a top dead-center relative to said axis, the slide having a transverse slot therein crossing said arcuate slot, and a crank pin fixed on the disc and projecting into said slots parallel to the axis of rotation of said disc.

6. A screen tensioning device for connection between the bottom cross bar of a frameless window screen and the adjacent sill; said device comprising a mount having a vertical face plate disposed in adjacent but spaced, facing relation to the bottom cross bar, inturned flanges on the opposite sides of the face plate whereby to define a vertical guide channel, wings projecting laterally outward from the inner edges of the flanges, said wings bearing on the bottom cross bar, means to fixedly secure the wings to said bottom cross bar, a fiat slide vertically slidable in said guide channel, said slide being releasably fixed and said plate having a relatively raised initial position and a relatively lowered screen tensioning position, means to attach said slide at its lower end to the sill, a lever arm, means pivoting the lever arm exteriorly to the face plate, and cam means between the lever arm and slide operative to move the latter between a relatively lowered initial position and a relatively raised position upon swinging of the lever arm; there being means causing said last named means to releasably lock when the face plate is in said relatively lowered, screen tensioning position.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,251,415 ODonnell Aug. 5, 1941 2,547,302 Blaser Apr. 3, 1951 2,605,826 Lang Aug. 5, 1952 

